Arrows of Fire
by DragonbaneLegend
Summary: Callie is the Dragonborn. A mortal that has the blood of a dragon, and the ability to absorb a dragon's soul. When her sisters persuade her to leave the Legion and join the Stormcloak Rebellion, she embarks on an adventure that will change her life forever.
1. Joining the Stormcloaks

"You joined the Legion?" My older sister questioned. She sounded disgusted at my choice. I had joined the Imperial Legion, after some great consideration. Being the Dragonborn, I'd had enough on my plate. And joining the Legion was something I had put off until defeating Alduin. I hinted at joining the Legion at the Peace Council between General Tullius and Ulfric Stormcloak, and Tullius was glad to hear that I wanted to join the Imperials instead of those a Stormcloak traitors.

I rolled my eyes, sighing in annoyance.

"Yes, Valinna. I joined the Imperials."

Her pale blue eyes were full of question. I could tell what she must be thinking: why would her sister, a Nord and a loyal citizen of Skyrim, join the Imperials?

She urged me to go back on my decision.

"What would mother or father think? They were both patriotic, and cared greatly about Skyrim!" She argued. I had enough with this conversation.

"Mother and father are dead." I snapped coldly. They'd died travelling to Riften when I was just 16. Killed by a pack of wolves. Since then, Valinna's taken charge of the family. But I've never seen her like this. She was usually so...upbeat. Always trying to live her life to the fullest. And now, since I joined the imperials, she was angrier than she was when I told her I let Greira join the Thieves Guild. I was the Guildmaster, at one point. She didn't care what I did as long as she wasn't involved, but to have little Greira inducted into the Guild? She wouldn't stand for that.

"What? You joined the Imperials?" said a quiet voice from behind me. It was Greira. She'd come back from collecting herbs outside the city walls.

She had weaved a purple mountain flower into her long, rose blonde hair. She was still wearing her Thieves Guild Armor, since she had only arrived in Whiterun a few hours ago.

Greira was softspoken, shy girl. She was 20 years old, and the youngest of us three. She enjoyed Alchemy, and since she lived in Riften, often worked with Ingun Black-Briar at Elgrim's Elixirs. She was an aspiring healer, and went to the College of Winterhold a few years ago to study Restoration. After that, she'd come back to Riften, and I offered her a place in the Guild. Greira, being shy and quiet, was reluctant to accept. But, with a little convincing, she joined, and has been the best recruit we've ever had. She was starting to come out of her shell, making friends in the Guild. She might even have feelings for Brynjolf, or "Bryn" as she's taken to calling him. He was my second-in-command, and often shared news of my younger sister's progress. Greira was a successful woman, despite her shyness.

"Yes, Greira. I don't want you to hate me because of my decision. I have to leave in the afternoon. Tullius wants me to travel to Korvanjund to retrieve the Jagged Crown."

Valinna put her hand on my shoulder. Her eyes were round and pleading.

"Please, re-consider your decision. I'm sure Lord Ulfric would let you join-you're the Dragonborn. Please, Callie." She pleaded. I felt like a fool, joining the Legion. My sisters were right. Maybe I should re-consider.

"I'll...consider going back on the decision."

An hour later, I left for Korvanjund. The ruins weren't far from the city of Whiterun. I could see Stormcloak soldiers guarding it when I was a few yards away, so I shot them all with my bow.

Getting inside on my own was easy. I picked the lock-Legate Rikke wasn't here yet. If I could get in and get out, maybe I could betray the Legion and give Ulfric the crown without having to encounter Legate Rikke.

The crown was apparently worn by High King Borgas. And this temple was his resting place.

There were two Stormcloak soldiers guarding the stairs. I shot them down and looted their arrows from them, and continuing down the temple. There were numerous groups of Stormcloaks grouped in a few different rooms. I had killed them all-despite the fact that I might decide to betray the Empire and help them.

One room had a Nordic puzzle door. I looted the Ebony Claw off of a dead Stormcloak's body, and unlocked the door.

The last room I entered was dark, and it took a minute for my eyes to adjust to the change in lighting. High King Borgas still sat on his throne, unmoving. Two coffins were beside him. I made a split-second decision to kill Borgas first, and then take out his comrades, who upon hearing Borgas' undead body drop to the ground, sprung from their coffins and unsheathed their weapons. One had an axe, the other had a sword.

Killing them was too easy-I'd been killing undead since I was a girl of fifteen.

I pried the Jagged Crown off of Borgas' head, and then went behind the throne to a Word Wall which had one of the words to the Slow Time shout. Now, all I had to do was try my luck with Jarl Ulfric Stormcloak.

I took of my Daedric helmet as I entered the Jarl's palace. I was going to hand over the Jagged Crown to Jarl Ulfric Stormcloak-not General Tullius, like I had originally intended.

I joined the Legion. And now, as a Legionnaire I was going against my oath.

My gaze lifted to where the Jarl sat in his seemed to be staring at nothing, his eyes fixed at some point in the distance. But seconds later, as I approached him, his blue gaze was fixed on me. He remembered me.

I was at Helgen. I was the one who chose to escape with the Imperials. I was the one who, in the Peace Council back when I was desperate to defeat Alduin, chose to make him hand over Riften and force him to compensate for the massacre at Karthwasten. I was the one he despised.

"Dragonborn," he hissed, his blue eyes like ice.

"My Jarl," I replied calmly. My dealings with him in the past were in the past. They needn't be spoken of again. I carefully handed him the Jagged Crown, laughing to myself as I saw the look of surprise on his face.

"You're giving the Crown to me? After joining the Legion and slaughtering my soldiers?"

"Yes," I replied calmly. "You could call it a peace offering. Any past quarrels I've had with you stay in the past. I can help you win the war, if you would only let me join the Rebellion."

The Jarl looked thoughtful.

"Perhaps. If you prove yourself to me. You will have to take a...different sort of test. Normally, I would have you kill an Ice Wraith on Serpentstone Isle. But, for someone who is an ex-Legionnaire and who has killed countless soldiers of mine, this test might prove to be easy,"

He stared at me intently, and added,

"I want you to kill a pack of ice wolves. They've been bothering my people who reside up at Anga's Mill. From the information I've been given, this pack consists of five wolves. I want you to kill it using only four arrows. I've heard of your archery skills, and I've no doubt that you can kill them. Bring me their pelts. Do not fail me, Dragonborn." He had a challenging look in his eyes. I gave him a cool stare.

"Yes, my Lord."


	2. The Test

Anga's Mill was up the hill from the city of Windhelm. It was only inhabited by probably less than 10 people, and I never understood why Ulfric couldn't just send a few extra guards up that way to deal with the problem. But, he wants me to get it done, so I'll follow his orders. After all, I did betray him by being a Legionnaire.

The pack of ice wolves weren't far from the mill. They lived across the waterfall between two mountains, where a group of bandits had once lived.

The group of bandits were scattered about the small camp that they'd made, some of their corpses lying in pools of dark crimson blood. Judging by how the corpses looked, these bandits must've been killed a few days ago.

The fire was still going, so I decided to sit down for a minute before killing the pack of wolves. I sat down on a log by the fire, and warmed my hands. Killing these wolves would be relatively easy, as soon as I found them.

I glanced sideways towards the cave. There were old looking animal bones, tinted red from the blood that remained on them. There was a skeleton of a deer, a bloody sword, and the body of one of the killed bandits.

Something in that cave caught my eye. They were yellow, and round. Then it hit me: those look like eyes...

The eyes of an ice wolf.

The ice wolf sprung from its hiding place, baring its teeth and growling. I quickly drew my bow. It took no time at all to load it and shoot the ice wolf, who was just meters away from me when I shot it.

Four other ice wolves came out from the cave.

After shooting the first three, I realized I had no arrows left. I used my Unrelenting Force shout on the remaining ice wolf, and it was sent flying back into the cave. If it was still alive, I would only have a few seconds to think of something...

I noticed another quiver of arrows inside one of the bandit's tents. Yes! I could kill the ice wolf with one of those arrows!

I darted into the tent, snatched the quiver of arrows and loaded my bow. I peered out from the tent. The ice wolf was still alive. It was charging towards me, it's only goal was to brutally maul me to death as it had done to the bandits who once resided here.

I shot the wolf just as it lunged for my throat. It fell to the ground in front of me, and a I breathed a sigh of relief. Now, I could go back to the Jarl and finally join the Stormcloaks.

A/N: Hey guys! I just want to say I am SO not used to FanFiction. I haven't used it since I was 12 or 13. I started writing on Wattpad and I can honestly say it's awesome. This story is on Wattpad as well, with 1.51k views, and 47 votes. The readers love it, and it's still in progress. So, if you're interested, go read it on Wattpad (I update faster there). My account is under the same name. Anyways, I hope you're enjoying the story so far!

~DragonbaneLegend


	3. Ice Veins

The Jarl of Windhelm sat on his throne, giving me a surprised look as I came in through the tall bronze doors of the palace.

I held my head high-he shouldn't be doubting my skill, after what he's heard I can do.

"You made it." He sounded impressed. I smirked.

"Of course. I wouldn't want to fail my favourite Jarl, now would I?"

He laughed heartily, and his laugh echoed throughout the Palace.

Oh, don't play games with me. You wouldn't be doing this if your sisters didn't make you." He smiled knowingly.

I narrowed my eyes.

"My life appears to be an open book. Where did you learn that?"

He shrugged, and I groaned in frustration. He was amused at the fact that I would be hounding him to give me the answer until he did.

"Word gets around. When the Dragonborn switches sides in the Civil War, things like that seem to draw quite a bit of attention."

I knew I wasn't going to get a straight answer out of him.

I sighed angrily, and shot him a cool stare.

"What am I to do next?" I asked calmly, trying to hold in my anger. What most people didn't know is that I had a fiery temper.

"We're taking Whiterun. Balgruuf has chosen to side with those Imperial dogs, and he'll pay for it."

That night, I stayed at Candlehearth Hall. I would've asked if I could stay in the guard's quarters at the Palace, but Ulfric was such an idiot. I didn't want to be anywhere near him.

Whiterun was such a peaceful place. Partly because it had been neutral. But, it just seemed peaceful because everyone was so friendly. I had made many friends within the walls of Whiterun, and because I changed sides, I probably wouldn't be speaking with them anymore. Especially not with the Battle-Borns, but then again I never really spoke to them, anyways.

Why did there have to be a Civil War? Why couldn't Skyrim just be at peace? I knew the Empire was afraid of the Aldmeri Dominion, but if they just stood up to them and rallied the rest of Tamriel against them, couldn't we take them on? Why do we have to waste time fighting amongst ourselves?

Those questions kept me up that night. I needed someone to talk to. Someone to give me answers.

I left for Whiterun the next morning. Ulfric had ordered me to report to Galmar before the attack, but I went my own way, and decided that I would try and get to Valinna before the fighting started.

When I got there, there were barricades put up along the pathway to the main doors to the city. I jumped over them, careful not to alert any of the guards. Oddly enough, no one had been guarding the door-the guards must've changed shifts. I got in the city unseen, and headed for Jorrvaskr.

I knew that upon seeing me, any citizen of Whiterun would report me to the guards, because I was now their enemy. It was funny, because I'd done good deeds for most of the people who lived in this city. And they considered me a friend. Well...not anymore.

When I got inside Jorrvaskr, Valinna was sitting with Farkas, drinking mead. She probably wanted to steel her nerves before the battle, I suppose. Our eyes met, and she strode over to me, a broad smile on her face.

"Callie! Gods, it's been long since I've seen you. How did you get in? The gates are heavily guarded." She had a worried look on her face.

"The guards must have changed shifts. There was no one guarding the gates when I snuck in. So, you're fighting too?" I asked, acting surprised. I knew she would fight, of course. I was just trying to make small talk.

"Yes! Why wouldn't I? The Imperials should get what they deserve-a good kick in the ass! And it's high time Whiterun got a new Jarl. Balgruuf is a damned fool. He's only in it for the gold!"

I believed that. I remember when Balgruuf was talking about the White-Gold Concordat. According to his steward, the chests of gold Balgruuf had received after agreeing to the treaty didn't hurt.

"Is Farkas coming with you?"

The muscular, strong Companion was sharpening his battleaxe. He had married Valinna, and the pair were very close. Vilkas, Farkas' twin brother, didn't like it at first, but he warmed up to Valinna and they became good friends.

"Gods, yes. I couldn't imagine going into a battle without him," the couple exchanged a loving glance.

"Vilkas and Aela won't show, but I've convinced Nadja and Torvar to participate." She nodded to the two Compainions, who had just recently become members of The Circle.

Nadja was a little bit of a bragger, and she could be mean at times. But, when Valinna became Harbinger, she set Nadja straight. There has never been an incident since then.

The battle started at noon. Valinna and her group of Companions fought closer to Jorrvaskr, while I tried to infiltrate the barricades blocking entry to Dragonsreach.

The Whiterun guards now considered me a threat. I felt bad for killing them, but it had to be done.

When I made it through the barricade and into Dragonsreach, I wasn't surprised at what I saw.

Balgruuf The Greater was decked out in Steel Plate Armour, and was surrounded by more Whiterun guards. Irileth, his housecarl, stood close by him.

We fought until Balgruuf stood down. Galmar had entered Dragonsreach shortly after I had, and that was when Balgruuf admitted defeat.

"That's enough! Stand down." He ordered his guards to stop. But by then, all of them were dead. Balgruuf and his housecarl came forward, and we'd formed a semicircle in front of them.

"You're all fools! The Empire will defeat you." Balgruuf hissed.

"The Empire died the day they signed that treaty." Galmar retorted. He had a point. The Empire probably signed it at the tip of a sword.

"And you," he glared at me with total hatred burning in his eyes,

"A Stormcloak? You've betrayed us all."

"You've betrayed us all." Balgruuf's words echoed in my mind. Those words were etched in my brain, and would remain there for my entire lifetime. Had I really betrayed them? I was aiding my people in overthrowing a Government who dictated the Nordic way of life, just because it is the will of the Altmer. They didn't accept Talos as a Divine, so they simply outlawed it for everyone. They knew the Empire wouldn't question it. Not after The Great War.

I was back in Windhelm two days later. Ulfric had been waiting to hear of our success, but why did he need to hear it in person?

Ulfric was in his usual spot, sitting on his throne in a slouched position. Every Jarl sat like that, except for Jarl Elisif, who didn't think it was proper.

"Callie. How was the Battle for Whiterun?" He asked, his blue eyes staring intently into mine.

"Dragonborn." I retorted. I didn't like it when people I barely knew called me by my first name, and not by my rank, or alias.

He laughed heartily.

"I'm the Jarl of this city, and your superior. I can call you by any name I want. You are Ice-Veins, now. You've earned that nickname." He smirked, as if he knew how pissed off I already was.

"Just tell me what you need me to do next." I sighed.

"Head to Fort Neugrad. You are to rescue our captured soldiers there. Ralof will help you with this mission. Understood, Ice-Veins?" He smirked.

"Understood." I replied, giving him a hard stare.

Fort Neugrad was not far from Helgen. It was just up the road from it, in fact, and it didn't look very heavily guarded, for a prison.

Ralof's team of soldiers was already there, and they seemed to be waiting for me to help clear the inside of the fort, and rescue the prisoners.

"Ice-Veins!" Ralof called as I came towards them. Oh Gods...him too? Was every Stormcloak soldier notified of my new rank that quickly?

"We were beginning to think you wouldn't come! These soldiers will stay outside, you and I will clear the rest of the fort. Are we clear?"

"Yes, Ralof."

We made it down to the prison in less than 5 minutes. The guards had the key, so we killed them and rescued the imprisoned Stormcloak soldiers, who were very thankful that we got there before something bad happened to them.

"You should report back to Jarl Ulfric and tell him of our success here." Ralof said.

So, I went back to Windhelm. I felt like my whole life was being spent travelling to Windhelm all the time.

Ulfric was impressed at how little time it took us to capture Fort Neugrad and rescuer the prisoners. I was promoted to Bone-Breaker, and to be honest, I appreciated the nickname. Now, Imperial soldiers would think twice before picking a fight with me.

That night, Ulfric had finally invited me to stay at the Palace in the Guard's Barracks. I accepted the invitation-the Guard's Barracks was probably much quieter than Candlehearth Hall, with drunks rambling and bards who sang terribly off-key and wouldn't shut up, and fights erupting between the Nords and the Dunmer.

I just picked a bed and fell in it. I didn't really care where I slept, I only cared if I got sleep. Because tomorrow, I would return to my home in the Falkreath Hold and wait until Ulfric gave me another order.

I went to bed at 10:30. It was normal for me-normally, if I was adventuring, I wouldn't go to sleep until well after midnight.

I sat in bed under the warm Sabrecat fur blankets, and I wondered why Ulfric was constantly teasing me about things. Was he doing it just to tease me and be mean, or was he doing it because he...liked me?

A/N: There may be a few errors in here, or words that are not in the right context. Also, every time I try to use the longer dash on my phone it becomes a regular dash. It irritates me xD so if you notice these errors, please tell me and I will gladly fix them. Thanks for reading!

DragonbaneLegend


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